Tumulty, Roy
June 22, 2011Roy Tumulty, recently deceased came to live in Summerhill, Wicklow town in 1940.
He was educated in the De La Salle, worked in Wicklow County Council and after a brief sojourn in Amercia, he returned to Ireland and entered Roadstone in 1963 in County Clare. He worked in the South East and South West before retiring to live in Castlebridge, Wexford in 2003.
He will be sadly missed by Marie and their five children, Ross, Jim, Anne Marie, Maeve and Eileen, living in Waterford, Wexford and Washington DC in the USA.
Roy was in the first instance a family man. He adored his children and nine grandchildren. He was also a keen gardener, loved his pipe and his sports. Golf in later years was his major sport and he always played back in Wicklow whenever he could. He was a great admirer and user of the local golf club.
In his younger days he played Gaelic football and soccer. He was a star player for St. Patrick's GAA Club and the Wicklow minor team which won the county final for three years in a row in 1948 to 1950. During the fifties he played senior footballer for St. Patrick's and was a scintilating player. He was tremendously fit and strong willed. Occasionally his short temper would be noted by referees.
In 1953 he was suspended by the GAA County Board for a couple of years for playing a foreign game i.e. soccer. He excelled at soccer but was received back into the GAA fold in 1955 and continued to play for St. Patrick's until he went to America in 1958.
He also declared for Roscommon, where he was born, and played on their county team in Gaelic Park, New York City.
Roy needed fulltime care for the last two years of his life so he lived with his daughter and her family with the help of Marie and carers. He was still in a home environment and be bore his illness with courage and dignity. He spent the past few weeks for his life in Oakland Nursing Home, Courtown Harbour, where he sadly passed away peacefully on Monday May 23.
After cremation his family brought his ashes to the Black Castle in Wicklow town. It was a part of Wicklow that he dearly loved and continued to talk about.
On a sunny Friday afternoon in June a large gathering of family and friends joined together as his son Ross from Washington DC, USA, distributed Roy's ashes in the direction of the Marl Hole, Brideshead, Wicklow Golf Club and St. Patrick's GAA Club.
His two brothers Brendan in New York and Ray of the Rocky Road in Wicklow, are also deep in sorrow at his loss.
A lone piper from the Defence Forces, Company Quartermaster, Sergeant Chris O'Dwyer, played the world famous Lord Lovat's Lament to accompany Roy's ashes as they descended towards the sea.
Ar Dheis De go raibh a anam Dilis.
Courtesy of the Wicklow People
22nd June 2011 Tweet
